Hanawa Hokiichi

Hanawa Hokiichi (塙 保己一, 23 June 1746 – 7 October 1821) was a Japanese famous blind scholar and buddhist monk of the Edo period.

Hokiichi became blind when he was 5 years old. He learned history, literature, medical science and jurisprudence from several masters. One of them was Kamo no Mabuchi. Hokiichi compiled "Gunsho Ruijū" (群書類従 Great collection of old documents).

In 1937, Helen Keller came to Japan and visited Hokiichi's memorial house. She expressed her impression as follows: "When I was a child, my mother told me that Mr. Hanawa should be my role model. To visit this place and touch his statue was the most significant event during this trip to Japan. The worn desk and the statue facing down earned more respect of him. I believe that his name would pass down from generation to generation like a stream of water.